Planning Tips

Before You Book

What is Jump with Jill again?

Jump with Jill is a school assembly that travels the country transforming nutrition education into a rock & roll nutrition concert. Armed with catchy songs, upbeat dance moves, and a hip wardrobe, Jump with Jill uses the same tools normally used to sell junk food and keep kids sedentary into a powerful tool for teaching healthy habits. Created by registered dietitian and musician Jill Jayne, the show leaves kids with nine take-away messages: respect your body; eat breakfast daily; eat vegetables to keep skin, hair, muscles, eyes, and bones healthy; choose naturally sweet fruit instead of candy; fuel your body with healthy food for sustained energy; exercise frequently; drink water instead of sugary drinks; get enough calcium; and look closer at foods promising free toys and touting cartoons. Jill’s interactive teaching style of these important topics not only makes eating breakfast and drinking water cool, but helps increase retention of these important health messages.

How do we book Jump with Jill?

To tell us about your location, number of students, and dates that might work for you, complete the booking form at jumpwithjill.com or contact Communications Manager Mark Jayne directly by email or 800.531.0760 x 2. To guarantee your date, you will be asked to sign a contract that you can return by our e-signing software.

Who should attend the show?

Jump with Jill is not just kids stuff – target the kids, and adults will follow.Consider inviting parents to the performance to get the messages home and community members who can activate your efforts outside of the school. You can shape health culture, not just individual health habits. Staff is asked to participate in the performance to model the behaviors we ask of the students. The show and the resources on the Jump with Jill website will give teachers tools for future lessons so the messages can continue in the classroom and improve the impact of the show.

How much does the show cost?

The cost of the show is based on your location – Jump with Jill corporate headquarters are based in Pittsburgh, PA with casts throughout the country to serve your geography. We make every effort to cluster dates per geographic area to make the cost as reasonable as possible. To this end, we offer discounts when venues share, for example when a school can refer to other schools in their district. Shows are priced at a flat rate, so there will never be additional travel expenses or fees on top of your quoted price. The show cost includes a sound system, travel, the performance fee, and media appearances.

How will we ever afford a show?

Schools can pay for the show privately through PTA funds for assemblies or fundraisers. Discounts are available to schools that join forces and book the show in the same area at the same time.

You can also explore external sources of funding to support our fees partially or in full. Try these:

Local and state health departments have funding earmarked for wellness. Specifically, health departments have a pool of money called “tobacco free” money from cigarette companies. Call your county health department and speak to their wellness coordinator to inquire about the availability of these funds.

Contact your state or local “Council for the Arts.” Many of the councils have grants for teachers to bring in artists like Jill. Contact your county educational services board that regulates your teaching standards and curriculum. In New York, for example, the BOCES (Board of County Educational Services) provides funding in full for Jump with Jill! Ask specifically for the “Arts in Education CoSer.”

Reach out to healthy companies in your area that might be interested in sponsoring or co-sponsoring the show in your school. The company will be featured in all of our media materials and in the show in your area―providing a unique advertising opportunity for them and a free show for you. Connect them with us and we can work out the finer details.

When can the show be available to us?

We generally book one month to six months in advance. Shows booked within a 2-3 hour driving distance of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, or Detroit can have a shorter lead time than shows requiring planes. When you give us an idea of your location, we can propose some dates that make sense for the touring cast and also factor in freight time for equipment to ship. Feel free to suggest dates and we can start building a tour around your date.

How long is a show?

Please allot one full hour for a show. We value your cooperation in helping the show start and end as scheduled.

Depending on the size of your largest room, and your student body, you can have one large rock show for K-5, or two smaller shows back-to-back for K-2 and 3-5. Please keep in mind that two back-to-back shows are more expensive, and for the health of our performers, encourage you to book single shows. Shows are performed for as many kids as your facility can safely and comfortably accommodate at one time. A stage is recommended for the performance so that everyone can see.

Where should we have the show—gym, auditorium or our weird cafetorium?

Choose the room with the stage. This maximizes visibility for the entire audience and also has the acoustics designed for music. If you don’t have a stage no worries! The gym is the second best choice. Given the aerobic nature of the show, kids will be seated on the floor, so no need to set up chairs for students or fold out bleachers. If the show is taking place in the auditorium the kids will do just fine in the bolted down seats.

Which “Jill” will perform our show?

When you are booking the show, we will make expectations clear as to which cast you will be working with for your performance, barring any illness or injury. Rest assured that any Jill is interchangeable, as they are all hand selected and trained by Jill Jayne herself.

We booked the show!

What do I need to have ready so that my school can properly rock out?

Jump with Jill is a professional theatrical production that has been performed nearly 3,o00 times for a million kids all over the world. Our biggest variable is a constantly changing performance space. We need your assistance with the following to maintain the quality of our show and ensure the safety of all in attendance.

How to setup the performance space

We come with our own sound system and wireless microphones, but could use your help to:

Clear off the stage or performance space we will be using. If your school does not have a stage, make a 15 x 20 foot space available.

Turn on any available stage or professional lighting.

If your stage is shared with your cafeteria, fold up and safely store any cafeteria tables. Mopping may be necessary, so please engage support staff early so the floor has time to dry.

Set up a row of chairs for teachers on each side of the room.

Make sure we have access to 2 separate working power outlets.

When we will arrive

We arrive two hours before starting a show to load in our equipment. Please have someone at your school prepared to let us into the performance space at this time.

Meet with Jill

Once we have unloaded and before Jill starts setting up the show, Jill will meet with you. Plan to:

Discuss the best setup for the show.

Receive an autographed flier for each student. These should be distributed by class to teachers’ mailboxes.

Receive teacher pamphlets of how to access materials to follow-up the show for staff mailboxes.

Confirm the start and end times of the show, emphasizing any essential deadlines like the start of lunch or dismissal.

Provide any specific references to your wellness efforts (e.g. All Sports Day, new item on the school menu) and the proper people to thank for bringing in the show. Jill does not need an introduction. She spends the time while students are filling the performance space to warm up, introduce herself, and review proper audience behavior for the show.

Provide the cast with drinking water.

Recommend a place nearby where we can find a healthy and fast lunch after the show.

Before kids enter the room

Before you start letting kids into the performance space, give Jill a yell that you are ready to open the house. We may be in the middle of sound check and setting the stage to rock.

Will there be any publicity when the show comes to our school?

Media coverage is a great way to inform the community of how your school or organization is actively stepping up to help prevent childhood obesity. As a result, print or TV reporters may come to your school or workplace to publicize the event with little or no advance notice. If special permission is needed for media to be present and photograph or film parts of the show at your event, please obtain necessary permissions ahead of time.

After the Show

Booking Jump with Jill unlocks free educational tools for your teachers including worksheets, music videos, music downloads, and more. Get the Jump with Jill Teacher Pamphlet.

Follow-up exposure to the music and messages improves the impact of the live show. We offer Jump with Jill CDs at discounted rates for your staff and students, or as a highly profitable fundraiser. Get the order form.

When news stories run, we ask that you send us a copy so we can promote the good work your school is doing. You will hear from our team after the performance with an invoice with all payment information, with any photos taken during the performance, and links to anything we posted onto our website or social media.